SHADOW DIVERS

    In the fall of 1991,in the frigid Atlantic waters ixty miles off the coast of New Jersey,weekend scuba diver john chatterton and richie Kohler made astartling discovery under decades of accumulated sediment:a World War ll German U-boat,its interior amaze of twisted metal and human bones.equally astonishing:All theofficial records agreed that there simtly could not be a sunken U-boat at that location.over the next six years,an elite team of divers embarked ona quest to solve the mystery.some ofthem would not live to see its end.Chatterton andkohler,at first bitter rivals,werw drawn into a deepbond of friendship.As the mens marriages frayed under the pressure of a shared obse ssion ,their divesgrew more daring,and each realized that he was hunting for more than the idetities of a lost U-boat and itsnameless crew.

    ROBERT KURSON earned a bachelors degreein philosophy from the University of wisconsin,then a law degree from Harvard law School.After working as a features reporter for the Chicago Sun-Times and chicago Magazine,he moved to Esquire as acontributung editor. His award-winningstories have also appeared in Rolling stone,the New york Times Magazine,and other publications.Helives in the Chicago suburbsand can be reached via the lnternet at www.robertkursom.com